Following the unceremonious exit of Vincent Enyeama from the Super Eagles and the backlash that has trailed coach Sunday Oliseh over the event, political commentator, Favour Afolabi has reacted to the messy development. Read his letter to Sunday Oliseh.
Coach Sunday Oliseh
I was the number one campaigner on Facebook for you to get this job but after the investigations I made overnight, I can confidently say that “You mismanaged this particular matter” – the facts that I now have of what actually occurred between you and Vincent Enyeama is simply shameful – away from the version that is being largely circulated in the media.
I have one word of advice for you – there were many people that didn’t want you to have this job – in fact, some of even said you had paid me to campaign for you but I insisted you had the required mental and technical frame to do this job – these same people are waiting for you to fail so they can say “I told you so; he is too arrogant” – do not let the pressure these same people are putting on you to over-perform to lead you to fail – and woefully too.
The interview you granted about “Musa v Enyeama v Captaincy” was jaundiced in my opinion – you don’t tell a 100+ Capped Player of over 13 years that “you want to build the team with players that are not retiring” when he is still currently rated a top 3 goalie in the French Ligue – then it gets worse – by you going political with your analogy to “the new President!”
The very thing that I stood with you for when it was done against you by NFA in Burkina Faso is what you have done to this gentleman – and please, most importantly – he did lose his mum – and it is apparent that you initially fell for the rumours [being spread by the same people that want you to fail] that he was lying about this when the woman died leading to missing camp at the time.
I am also not sure that you offered him your official condolences through this entire period; Bros, some of us have come to know that “Intelligence, Competence and Skills” are not the only things a man needs to excel in a career, so also do you need “Excellent People and Relationships Management” as well even moreso as a football manager.
There is also the talk about “NFF wanting to push out old players to build a new tam” – don’t let them lead or push you to do “a good thing in a bad way” – let things mature naturally – don’t force it – because it is not as though you can fully boast of the most competent replacements yet for these older players – not fully for Enyeama despite Ikeme’s performances and not for the others as well.
I won’t be advising you to beg Vincent to return to the team but I would be expecting you to make amends by having him have a proper and befitting retirement from the national team should he insist on doing so – this thing was done to you – don’t go into the records of allowing yourself be the tool that makes this happen to him as well.
Best wishes.
Favour Afolabi is a political commentator who runs fbablogs.com in his spare time; and owns a real estate brokerage services company. He tweeted from @favourafolabi.